Just for once
by little purple butterflies
Summary: A deeper look into a scene from "Shattered Image". Steve didn't immediately tell Mike about what he had found out at the airport. Why?


******Disclaimer: All characters are property of CBS, Warner Brothers and Quinn Martin and sadly not mine. I just take them along for the ride. In this case I also took the lines from the episode.  
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******Special thanks to my dear friend Sarah **(1983Sarah)** for being a great beta, the girls of a SOSF fangroup for their support and tanith2011 for encouraging me to write and post this. Thanks to everyone who read and/or reviewed one of my others stories.**

Steve Keller was a cop long enough to know that somebody lying didn't necessarily mean that the person was guilty of something.

But pacing the hotel's lobby as he waited for Mike to meet him there he couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right, that they missed an important piece of the puzzle that, when found and put in its place, would reveal a whole different picture.

Steve saw the doors of an elevator open and caught sight of his partner, so he moved over to him, his left hand unconsciously rubbing his ear.

"Steve, did you find the luggage?" Stone asked immediately after exiting the elevator.

They fell in step next to each other, and after a quick sideway glance at Mike to his left the inspector decided to keep his answer, and therefore the amount of information it contained, as short as possible. "It's not in yet. I'll have it inspected as soon as it gets here." He had slowly dropped his hand to his side, hoping that his friend hadn't picked up on the gesture which was one of those he usually displayed when his mind was whirling.

Since Steve now was half a step behind Mike, the older detective had to turn his head and upper body around halfway to address him.

"What about the driver?" the lieutenant inquired before turning back around.

With his gaze directed at the floor Steve answered, "R&I says no record." And then, before he could give in to his nerves and change his mind about bringing up the subject, he added quickly, "Hang on half a minute, will you?"

His partner's gaze shifted to him at that while the young man continued, "I gotta ask you something." That stopped Mike in his tracks and he turned around to his partner who took two steps in order to reach him.

The young detective didn't make eye-contact while he tried to come up with a good way to approach the subject carefully. "Um," he hesitated, coming to a stand in front of Stone, and with his hands clasped nervously in front of his body he, for the first time, looked his partner in the eye. "How is it you're so close with someone like Fred Marshall's wife in eight minutes flat?"

Normally he respected his friend's privacy, as Mike did his even if he appeared to be nosy about the young man's relationships, but this time he knew that as much as he wished he just couldn't do it.

"Try eight years in the Portrero," Mike answered.

Keller had assumed it had been more than just instant liking with his superior and Anne Marshall, but this was more than what he had expected. So, before he could stop himself, he replied, "You're kidding." And a tiny part of him actually hoped that Mike had, not that he thought there was even the slightest chance of that.

The older cop shook his head. "Anna Slovatska," he explained in his usual manner with his head slightly tilted to the side, "Her brother Andy was my best pal. He's buried somewhere in the Pacific."

The inspector noticed that Mike had chosen his words carefully. While the lieutenant had told him who she was, he, however, had left out who she was _to him._ Anyone else might not even have caught it but Steve knew his friend well enough to pick up on that little trick.

He looked down for a moment, nodding slightly as he processed the information given by the older man. Realizing that Mike wasn't going to elaborate on that topic, Steve decided to carefully prod some more. "Well, I guess she must mean something special to you," he replied, trying to put it as close to neutral as he could, his calm exterior betraying his nervous mind.

A small smile appeared on Stone's face before he quickly schooled his features again, but not fast enough for Keller to have missed it. And seeing the smile Steve knew he couldn't tell his partner that she had left out her whereabouts at her husband's time of death, at least not just yet.

"Uh," Mike said after a moment, and then, sidestepping the subject to avoid having to answer, he added, "Right now, I wanna talk to Olsen."

That reaction told the young cop more than any carefully laid answer of his partner could have. And the fact that Stone immediately turned around after having said it and walked away signaled more than clearly that this subject was closed for him.

For the time being, Steve let him have his way.

Because for now it didn't have any significance to the case, so he could justify to keep it to himself for a bit longer, knowing that, if he would tell him right now, the older man would most likely brush it aside anyway.

Looking at Mike's retreating back as he followed him out of the hotel, Steve prayed that, just for once, his hunch was wrong.

**A/N: Thanks for reading! If you have some time please leave a review! Constructive criticism is always appreciated.  
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